St. Patrick’s Day Activity: Quiz  is a simple St. Patrick’s Day activity for teens and adults. In this activity, students test their knowledge about Ireland and Saint Patrick’s Day by answering multiple choice questions about St Patrick’s Day. This activity is a fun way to teach your students a little bit about Ireland while testing their knowledge. Level: Intermediate +  Time: 15 – 20 Minutes Materials: Copy of the presentation (see below) <span data-mce-type=”bookmark” style=”display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;” class=”mce_SELRES_start ..read more

Learning Names is a great way to introduce yourself in the first class with young learners. In this activity the teacher uses objects that spell out their name. Students have to say what the objects are and guess the teacher’s name. This is a simple but effective icebreaker that is sure to be a success with all groups. Aim: Introduce teacher and students’ names, icebreaker Level: Young learners Time: 10 – 15 minutes Method Draw on the board as many objects as there are letters in your name. The first letter of each object must be a letter in your name. For example, for “David”,  y ..read more

Draw me Something is a simple activity that can be used as a way of starting a lesson on articles but can be adapted for other grammar points such as dependant prepositions. Activity time: 5 minutes Level: teens and adults (A2 +) Skills practiced: Speaking, listening  Materials needed: Pencil and paper for each pair of students. Method Put the class in pairs, A and B. Tell them that they will be giving each other a series of instructions to draw various simple pictures. Give each pair the handouts below, making sure each pair has one copy of A and one of B, which they keep secret from each ..read more

Quick Draw is a simple activity to review vocabulary with your students. In this activity students are put in teams. They are then given a fixed amount of time (e.g 2 minutes) to draw as many words as they can. They must have their team say the word before they can move on to the next word. Allow teams to skip words that they find difficult but make a note of these words and have students review them after the activity. The team who gets the most words in the time are the winners. Activity time:  5 minutes + Level: Teens and adults and young learners (All levels) Skills practiced: Vocabulary M ..read more

Name 10 is a simple warmer/cooler get students focused at the beginning or end of class. In this activity students have to work in pairs or individually and write a list of ten things based on what the teacher says. This activity is particularly useful to practice sets of vocabulary with students  in class.  Activity time: 5 – 10 minutes for two rounds Level: teens and adults (A2 +) Skills practiced: Vocabulary Materials needed: Pencil and paper for each student or group of students. Method Put students in pairs or small groups and give them a piece of paper and a pencil. The teacher lists a ..read more

Stop Santa’s Sleigh is a simple festive activity that works well with teens and even adults. In this activity students play in pairs. The teach gives students a category such as ‘Name three Christmas traditions” and then the students have to write three Christmas traditions and then say ‘Stop Santa’s Sleigh’  are the winner of that round. Keep reading to find a printable list of categories and the full instructions.  Activity time:  10 minutes + Level: Teens and adults  (B1 +) Skills practiced: Vocabulary and speaking Method First, put students in pairs. Tell your students that you are going ..read more

Tongue Twister Race is a fun activity for young learners. In this activity you need to choose a tongue twister. It’s best to choose a tongue twister that practices words your students have difficulty with. You can find a list of tongue twisters here to practice with your students.  To play, first students practice a tongue twister which you have written on the board. In teams, students first practice with each other in preparation for the game. When your students have had 2 or 3 minutes to practice the tongue twister they then stand up in two lines. The first team must say the tongue twister o ..read more

Spin the marker  is a speaking activity that is a great way to allow free speaking practice in the class. Sometimes students just want a chance to talk and express themselves in an unstructured way and this activity can be a great way to encourage this type of speaking practice. This activity is best used with teens and adults who have a intermediate level or above. Start by placing a marker on the ground or on a table. The marker is spun and whoever the marks stop at must decide what the conversation will be about. They can suggest a topic or ask a question to the class. With lower levels it ..read more

Pass the marker is a fun activity that just requires a marker and a whiteboard. In this activity, students form two lines in front of the board. Starting from the back of the line the first students say a word and then the next student. The student last in the line must repeat all the words said by the students in their line and then write them on the board. The first student to write all the words on the board and spell them correctly wins that round. The teacher should monitor that all the words are correct for each group. You can choose words from a category that they have studied recently ..read more

Brain Teasers are a fantastic way of engaging students and can work well in the classroom. Brain teasers are puzzles where your students have to think to find a solution to the problem. They require students to often think in unconventional ways and as such can be a fun activity for everyone in the class, not just the best students. Ways to use Brain Teasers in the classroom As a Warmer/Cooler Start/end your lesson with a Brain Teaser. Have students read a brain teaser and try and think of a solution to the problem. After a few minutes, have students discuss their possible solutions. As a conv ..read more